A Bug's Life 2 : The Rainy Season & Beyond
by Flikaline Rosalka
Summary: The story of the events between the rebellion and the Spring. OCs and events continued from A Little Bug's Life.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

They had arrived back soaked and exhausted, having been absent for several days held back by their bad physical states and the weather. Nearly all the ants rejoiced when they saw them. There was only one exception; a slightly older almost white male with a scar on his left temple which looked somewhat like a lightning bolt rotated 90 degrees, his blue eyes flashing wildly looking towards Flik.

Before Flik and Atta knew what was happening, they had been lifted up by the other ants and were being paraded around the anthill!

Atta was worried that Flik should go to the infirmary to have his wounds tended to but Flik was having the time of his life!

'Wahoo!' he shouted. Atta couldn't help but laugh.

The noise of the procession alerted other ants, who hadn't heard the uproar of cheering on their arrival, hurried towards the clamor. The majority of these were children who had been in their chambers or in bed.

Whooping could be heard from the approaching Blueberry Scouts not much later followed by the circus bugs. The queen and Dot rushed into the large passage which Flik and Atta were presently being paraded down. Dot cheered loudly, flying into the air and doing a summersault.

'Oh, thank goodness.' Queen Amadala sighed.

'He did it! He did it! I knew he could do it! Yay! I always believed in him!'

'Dot, calm down.' Her mother said to her with a laugh.

'He's rad! He's awesome! He's my best friend! He's Flik!' Dot continued to shout out.

'Yeah, he's way cool!' Dot turned her head to see it was one of the boys from her class, Grub. Grub looked a little embarrassed.

Dot turned her attention back to Flik.

'Flik! Flik! Flik!' she cheered. Many of the other ants began to join in.

'Um, Princess Dot . . .' Grub began but quickly realized she was paying no attention to him whatsoever. He sighed, feeling rather disappointed. The queen noticed this and felt sorry for him and a little annoyed with her daughter.

'Dot! Grub was speaking to you!' Dot temporarily stopped her cheering.

'Huh? What?'

'Would you . . .' the small boy began, 'that's if you want to . . .'

'Do you want Dot to have a play date with you?' the queen asked him kindly. Grub swallowed.

'Y-y-yes, Your Majesty . . .'

'Dot, would you like to?' she asked her, 'Dot?'

'Oh, um, yes, why not.' she replied, only half concentrating. Grub gave a smile of which Dot didn't see because she had looked away again and continued her cheering.

'When would you like it, Grub?' the queen asked, trying to make up for Dot's lack of attention to him, 'Tomorrow?'

'Whenever it's most convenient.'

'I don't think she's doing anything tomorrow. I'll ask her. Dot? Dot!' The parading was now near the end of the long passage way and Dot had flown after it. 'Oh, I'm sorry, Grub. She's not normally like this. She's just a little hyper at the moment.'

'I noticed.' He said to himself smiling.

Petal thought it was unfair that Flik was getting all the glory and Atta wasn't getting any. She obviously felt strongly about it and she was blinding her best friend, Kevin with the reasons why. This was only interrupted by the yelp of a small girl who had only noticed the oncoming parade just in time due to her small size and the excitement of the other ants.

'Close one there, Poppy!' Petal called. Poppy gave a shy smile. Poppy was the smallest ant in the colony, even smaller than Dot! (Not by much though) She was the youngest too which gave her some excuse.

It was unknown how it was possible but miraculously she had brown eyes. When Petal had first met her, she had said her brown eyes were as miraculous as the fact she hadn't been crushed yet!

The queen had at first thought Dot would get on with Poppy very well but she quickly realized it wouldn't work. Dot couldn't help feeling a little bitter that Poppy was younger than her yet she was almost as tall as she was.

Poppy was liked by everyone (well, almost) but didn't really have any real actual friends because she was very shy. Petal was the closest she had to a friend because she would include her in what she and Kevin were doing if she happened to be there. Petal had recently been trying to persuade her to join the Blueberry Scouts. This hadn't been as easy as Petal had thought it would be but then it wasn't really surprising since Petal's arguments for joining included hiding from the grasshoppers in the club house and flying the Bird until it was set on fire!

Zenna (the Blueberry Scouts leader) had left the Blueberry Scouts and had named Petal as leader.

Reed and Daisy were considering joining too. Reed secretly really wanted to be a Blueberry Scout but one of the girls, Mushroom, was evidently not very keen on her at all, which made Reed hesitate. Daisy, on the other hand, wasn't really sure she wanted to be a Blueberry Scout in the first place.

The procession was eventually stopped by Dr. Flora who insisted that Flik and the princess must come to the infirmary to rest and injuries looked at. Atta was quite relieved to be able to get down. Flik on the other hand, could've stayed up there for quite sometime. Dr. Flora managed to help them escape from the adoring crowd. Atta had very few injuries compared to Flik who was covered in them.

'You were lucky you've got no cracks in your exoskeleton,' Dr. Flora told him. Atta couldn't help feeling guilty. She wasn't sure why she did but she couldn't get rid of the feeling. 'All your injuries will heal but it will take some time for you to be completely fine again, probably all winter. You'll both need to be especially careful not to catch anything, particularly you, Flik. And with your injuries it will be very easy to get sick. The weather's not going to get any better,'

They both nodded solemnly and listened to the sound of rain outside which had become louder. 'Oh, one thing you mustn't do Flik, under any circumstances, is go outside. Until spring, I mean. When it stops raining it means they'll be more soon or snow is coming. It would be close to a miracle if you were completely fine. Of course Princess, you shouldn't go outside either and nor should anyone else but it could be fatal for Flik.' Atta nodded. 'Now I think you two need to get cleaned up and get some rest.'

They nodded and sat down on a leaf. The anthill was still abuzz with excitement and it seemed unlikely that many of the ants were going to get much sleep tonight.

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	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

'There you are, Flik, all done.' Dr. Flora told him.

'Does this mean I can go to the party?'

'Yes, a little dancing shouldn't affect you as it's mainly bruising,' she replied 'Just don't go too mad,' she added quickly, remembering Flik's tendencies, 'And if you feel any sudden pain you must stop and sit down to avoid any further damage.'

'Do you think he's coming, Ivy?' Atta asked her over the noise of chatter and music. They had all gathered in the main chamber. 'It would be such a shame for him to miss his own party . . .'

'Flik should be coming, shouldn't he? Dr. Flora said he would be able to, didn't she?'

'She said he might be able to. Oh, there's Dr. Flora over there; I'll go ask her. Dr. Flora?'

'Oh, yes, Your Highness?'

'Flik is coming, isn't he?'

'Oh, yes, he was insistent upon it, especially as . . .' She looked up at Atta, 'um . . .as . . .'

'As it's his own party?'

'Um, yes. Yes, of course . . .' Atta hurried back to Ivy.

'He's coming,' Atta told Ivy.

'Why do you look so worried?'

'Oh, Ivy. What if he doesn't like me?'

'Of course he likes you!' Ivy exclaimed, spluttering with laughter, 'It's been obvious for ages and ages!'

'Well, what I mean is, well, after I banished him and everything . . .'

'Oh, come on, Atta! He's not going to think about, well . . .'

'I suppose you're right, I'm just panicky and nervous . . .'

'Don't be. You need to relax yourself. Get out there and dance!'

'What! Ivy are you insane!'

'Oh, go on, Atta. I'm waiting for Carlos anyway,' she said with a slight blush.

'I – I dunno . . .'

'We all know you can. You're brilliant. Now get over there and dance!'

'Alright, alright. I'm going, I'm going . . .' Ivy was correct. Atta was very good, noticeably in fact but that wasn't the only reason a large majority of the teen males were staring at her. Several workers pulled their boyfriends away.

Flik hadn't wanted to be late, in fact, he had wanted to be early but by the time he had left the infirmary, the corridors were crowded and he had put off arriving to avoid the giggly workers. He had managed to sneak in, so far, undetected. He caught sight of the princess dancing. He smiled to himself and gazed at her. He wasn't paying attention to where he was going and crashed into some of the other ants. He felt frustrated; he hadn't been clumsy in this way for ages and ages.

As the ants tried to stable themselves, one of them accidentally jabbed him with their elbow. This wouldn't have had much effect if it hadn't been for Flik's bruising. He ended up toppling over into one of the chamber walls. Very luckily, he wasn't hurt.

He heard someone giggle. He turned his head to see Atta who had temporally stopped dancing. She gave a small smile; there was something in her expression that asked if he was alright. He gave a nervous laugh and an awkward smile in reply.

For a moment, she hesitated, but then she beckoned him over. Flik was thrilled. She wanted him to dance with her! He was having to use a great amount of self control to keep himself from leaping around wildly in circles and cartwheeling around the chamber shouting yippee!

Not long after they started dancing, the other ants began to notice, particularly the teenagers. Quite a number of them couldn't believe they hadn't known about this development earlier. Those who were still not looking, had begun to gossip eagerly.

Dot had stopped telling Grub a first hand account about the bird incident in the summer and was staring open mouthed at her sister and her best friend in each others arms. How had she not known before?

Heather, who was dancing with Fossil, let out a girly giggle when she saw. Petal whooped while spinning herself and Kevin in a continual circle. Kevin was getting a little dizzy.

The teenagers remained silent for a few moments but soon a large amount of them burst into applause. Atta and Flik stared, blushing slightly.

A white teenage male glared; Myrmica. He was in a terrible rage. He was shaking with fury, his eyes flashing wildly, his fists clenched. The sight of that loser and the princess together, so happy, was maddening.

'Hazel would have loved to see this . . .' the queen said to herself.

'Who?' Dot asked.

'Oh, your father, dear.'

'What happened to him, Mom?'

It seemed impossible for Atta and Flik to get out of the public eye. Everytime they did anything there was an enthusiastic crowd watching. If they sat down, the crowd would all come over, asking questions.

'We need a distraction,' Flik whispered to Atta, 'to get them off our backs.'

'We can help!' Fossil said coming up behind them, accompanied by Heather, 'We'll distract them. And if it doesn't work, the circus bugs have a few ideas. Slowly start to walk to the chamber entrance, that way you are less likely to be noticed.'

They walked down the corridor hand in hand. It was peaceful now they were some distance away from the main chamber. They entered a chamber and sat down on a large rock together. Atta suddenly noticed a patch of dirt on her shoulder.

'Oh, dear,' she said in an embarrassed tone, 'I look a sight don't I?'

'Doesn't matter. You still look beautiful . . .' She looked up at him with slight surprise before a slow blush began to cross across her face. Flik smiled awkwardly. 'Here, let me get that for you . . .' He brushed the dirt off her shoulder.

There was a moment's silence. Flik felt he should say something. 'Um, sleep well last night? Haven't had any nightmares?' Atta went pale. Flik felt very bad. He had been thinking about their experience with Hopper but the subject had made her think of Thistle. 'I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Please forgive me! I didn't mean . . !'

'It's – it's okay,' she said weakly, 'It's just, well, I still feel scared . . . I just feel that one day she'll come and get me . . .' Flik didn't know what to say for he knew that Thistle would try to kill Atta again and again. Atta had no real idea how Thistle felt about her or how much danger she really was from her. 'Do you think she will? Tell me. Will she?'

'No, well, yes, maybe, she will, might try but don't worry; I'll protect you. Nothing will happen to you.' Atta gave a small smile.

'When you stood up to Hopper it reminded me of when you defended me from Thistle. I didn't know, I guess I forgot how heroic you were. I guess I never gave you as much appreciation as you deserved . . .'

'It doesn't matter,'

'And something else, Flik,'

'Yes?'

'Do you remember, what I did when I found you were alive?'

'Y-yes, you . . .' They both blushed.

'Well, I know I did it because I was so happy you hadn't been killed but . . .' She hesitated for a second, 'Well, what I mean to say is that I had feelings for you then but, I don't know, I guess . . . I should've told you then. And after we came home, the whole impact of what had happened came to me and I felt I couldn't trust anyone, and I connected you with this . . .'

'I was gonna tell you how I felt about you. Remember, back at the pool but I didn't have enough courage and after, when we came back, you don't know how much I regretted it.'

'We've wasted so much time when we could've been together, Flik.'

'I know, and I wish we hadn't, but at least we're together now . . .' They drew closer. The sound of giggling was heard from near the chamber entrance. They drew away. 'Alright, who's there?' Flik asked. Four children stepped into view: Dot, Grub, Petal and Kevin. They were still laughing.

'Nothing like a bit of privacy.' Atta sighed with an unwilling smile.

'Who's Thistle?' Dot inquired. The color drained from Atta's face.

'N-n-nobody . . .' she replied. Dot put her hands on her hips.

'Come on, let's go,' Dot grumbled. The other three followed her.

'Nice work, Gretel,' Petal whispered to Atta who stared at her as she left. How did Petal know? Atta had told her the story it was true but how had she worked out that it was actually about her and Flik?

'I have to tell her, Flik,' Atta said to him, 'I mean Mother. I have to tell her what happened, you know, with Thistle. I should've told her in the first place even if she was unlikely to believe me.' Flik put a hand on her shoulder.

'Tell her tomorrow. I'll come with you,' Flik told her, 'You'll feel better tomorrow.'

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	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Atta had asked Flik to meet her near the now abandoned throne room. Flik didn't feel particularly great this morning and it seemed that maybe he had overdone the dancing after all. But he was determined to keep his promise no matter how bad he felt. Telling the queen the truth couldn't wait a day longer and Atta couldn't go it alone.

He turned into the next tunnel. Atta was down there with . . . Myrmica! Flik charged over without even thinking. They were both very surprised.

'Hey, stay away from my girl, Myrmica! She's mine!' Flik yelled, clenching his fists.

'Rather over protective, aren't you?' Myrmica replied coldly.

'Flik it's okay; we were just talking,' Atta told him. Flik continued to glare at Myrmica. He didn't trust him one dew drop. 'Flik, really,' Atta giggled. Flik tried to rearrange the expression on his face.

'Shall we go, then?' Flik asked, trying to keep it as casual as possible.

'Yes, I'm ready,' she replied before turning to Myrmica, 'sorry about Flik, Myrmica, he's just a little . . .'

They walked off. Myrmica was furious.

The queen was in the Council Chamber with Cornelius. There were several other groups dotted around including the circus bugs who were discussing ideas for new acts with P.T. Flea. Some of the ants, including Cotton and Carlos, seemed to be interested. They were so deep in conversation that they had not noticed Atta and Flik enter. Atta felt very nervous. She looked at Flik.

'It'll be okay,' Flik assured her, 'I promise.' Atta smiled at him, remembering the promise he had made to her all that time ago.

'But what if she doesn't believe us? Then what do we do?'

'She will, Atta. I know she will.' And Flik did know she would and he also knew that Atta was in for a bit of a shock. Atta shivered. Flik took her hand.

'Mother?' The queen looked up.

'Yes, dear?'

'We, well, I, have something to tell you,' Atta began. Cornelius looked up too.

'Go ahead, Atta,' her mother replied.

'Okay, well you're probably not gonna believe this, but . . .'

'Sounds like that lava's tale,' Cornelius said when they'd finished, 'what's it called again? Hansel & Gretel? Is this some sort of joke? Amadala has enough to think about without . . . Amadala?' The queen had gone quite pale.

'Mother, are you alright?' Atta asked.

'Tell me, dear. This queen ant, what was her name?' Cornelius looked back at the queen with a different expression on his face, sharing her thoughts. Flik braced himself.

'H-Her name was Thistle . . .' Cornelius went pale, the queen got paler. The majority of the other ants in the Council Chamber turned their heads abruptly, a few yelled in panic as if they thought she was right there.

'Atta,' the queen said in shock, 'why didn't you tell me before?'

'I, I didn't think you'd believe me . . .' The queen looked very guilty.

'This is all my fault! Hazel frequently told me to tell you! You were almost killed!'

'Well, if it hadn't been for Flik I would've been. Hang on, you knew about her!'

'Yes,' Amadala admitted.

'We all did,' Cornelius added, 'Including Flik. Probably why he was so suspicious in the first place.'

'But how could you forget about her, Flik?' Atta asked.

'After Hazel's death, it was very difficult for me to access any memories from before it, remember,' Flik explained, 'My memory of Thistle only came back to me when I saw those bodies . . .' Atta shuddered.

'Sorry Atta,' Flik said.

'But I didn't want you to know a maniac was after you!' Amadala told her daughter, 'You would have had such dreadful nightmares! Your nightmares! They were about . . .' Atta nodded.

'But what do you mean 'a maniac was after me'? I don't understand.' Her mother sighed.

'Atta, it's time you knew the truth . . .'

The queen and Cornelius included nearly every detail. Flik noticed they didn't tell her that Thistle was actually her godmother but they probably thought she'd had enough shock for one day.

' . . . And she would do anything to get rid of me?'

'She's obsessed with you, Princess,' Cornelius told her, 'she would be happy to kill herself as long as she was killing you at the same time. Surprising you didn't notice . . .'

'I, I did notice but I just thought she wanted . . . and the fact I was a queen. I didn't realize it was anything personal . . . And she tried two times before?'

'Yes,' the queen replied, 'Hazel was the only ant who seemed to be a real match for her.'

'Flik managed quite well!' Atta retorted.

'To tell you the truth,' Flik said, 'I think Hazel trained me for the situation, like he gave you training for stamina, Atta.'

'And being obsessed with you was probably very tiring . . .' Cornelius added. Atta scowled. Flik seized his chance.

'Some of Thistle's children are still here though!' Flik began hurriedly, 'Myrmica-,'

'Yes, yes, yes. But none of them seem to be much trouble.' the queen said.

'But . . .' Flik interrupted.

'They're Cornelius's children too you know. You know Carlos, he's not nasty. And I think we would've noticed by now if any of them were insane.' she continued.

'Yes, Carlos is nice.' Atta replied. Flik sighed.

'Do you know what surprises me?' said Cornelius, 'That Thistle hasn't tried anything more recently.'

'Yes,' the queen answered, 'And quite worrying. Thistle is not just going to give up.'

'Unless she's dead,' Cornelius said, 'that's the only reason for her not to be planning something.' Atta was looking increasingly fearful. Flik put an arm around her.

'I'll keep you safe, Atta. Don't worry.' Flik whispered to her.

'Nothing will be allowed to happen to you, dear.' the queen told her, seeing her daughter's fear.

'What I want to know is,' Cornelius said, 'is how your experience with Thistle is so similar to that Hansel & Gretel story.'

'What is this story anyway?' the queen asked Cornelius.

'A boy and a girl get lost, a queen offers them shelter but she's actually a cannibal . . .'

'This is impossible! How can it be!' the queen exclaimed, 'It's almost exactly . . !'

'It was my doing,' Atta admitted, 'I told Petal and some other kids who gathered to listen but I told it like a made up story. I took the names from a small memorial we saw; they were the first names I thought of at the time and now that I think about it, it's pretty ironic really . . .'

'Why did you tell Petal and those other kids though?' her mother asked.

'I, I don't know, I guess, I guess I just wanted to get it off my chest without anyone knowing it had happened. It didn't really work though. I think Petal realized ages ago . . !'

'It's okay, dear. It's okay . . .' the queen replied.

'I-I-I d-didn't r-realize how much hold this thing had on me! It's affected everything! I-I mean I-I've always been a panicker but . . .' Atta ended up sobbing on Flik's shoulder with her mother trying to calm her down.

Flik's thoughts flittered back to the event and he could now see that the effects on Atta had been inevitable from the beginning. He couldn't help blaming himself; Atta had thought it could be dangerous. It seemed like it was hours that he stood there with the distressed princess in his arms.

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	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

The weather was getting worse and food was in short supply. Although they had had to gather more food for the grasshoppers, every single piece of food had been left outside. Brave workers had hurried outside the second the rain had stopped in order to get as much of the food as they could back into the anthill before it started again. But this still meant food was in short supply.

Because of the weather, there was no way the circus bugs could return to the city very easily or very safely so they had no choice but to remain on Ant Island until spring. Although they were welcome, it also meant more mouths to feed and with the little amount they had, despite strict rationing, it didn't look like there would be enough to get them through the winter.

'Anarchy will occur if the food supply runs out!' Thorny had pointed out.

'Anarchy!' Cornelius had echoed.

'And who knows what else,' Dr. Flora had added, 'the colony could result to cannibalism!'

'Shh! Not so loud, Flora!' the queen had whispered urgently, 'If Atta hears the word 'cannibalism' . . . She's worried enough as it is about Thistle and the food supply . . .' But Atta had heard and did feel more worried. Something had to be done.

The next morning, she happened to wake up exceptionally early. She went to the entrance of the anthill for some fresh air. She looked out. The rain had stopped. The queen had specifically told her not to . . . but . . . No-one was awake; at least no-one seemed to be. If she was a worker she might even have been expected to go out at this opportunity. Her mother would never know; she would surely think it was one of the workers or there had been a miscount . . . She looked around; she had made her decision.

She stepped outside and the cold suddenly hit her. She gave a shiver. She stretched her wings and flapped them up and down in order to warm them up to prepare for take off. She would surely be able to get to the food faster than the workers. She would get some grain quickly then return to the anthill. Just a few pieces.

Atta had collected nine pieces of grain so far and it was starting to get light. It had now become easier to see the large areas of snow beginning to cover the island. She knew she should've gone back ages ago. Surely getting one more piece couldn't hurt? To make it a round number? And with the snow beginning to settle, it could be the colony's last chance to collect food. She set off to find one more piece of grain.

She soon found one near the edge of the island. Atta was just about to pick it up when she heard something. She could hear the sound of wings. Her mind was surely playing tricks on her? But just incase it wasn't, she hurriedly tried to conceal herself among the clovers. She gasped. Her mind hadn't been playing tricks on her. The grasshoppers landed.

'This is it?' a dark green grasshopper snapped.

'Well . . . yes Spur . . .' Molt murmured. The others nodded in agreement.

'Hopper must've been so incredibly dumb not to be able to cope with this!' Spur replied with some sort of satisfaction in his voice.

'You don't know these ants,' another grasshopper said.

'Yeah,' a second added, 'there's this particular one . . .'

'Ants are only dangerous when you're young. After that . . . Hey, there's one over there!' Atta froze.

'That's their princess, Spur.' Molt told him.

'Well, what are you waiting for!' Spur yelled, 'Grab her!' Atta took flight in an instant. She didn't stand much chance of getting away from the start. She was still recovering from the Hopper situation and had tired herself out by collecting grain as quickly as she could, not even taking into account Spur's exceptional flight speed.

Surely not even Spur would dare enter the anthill? At least not at first. But that would give her enough time to alert the colony. If she could just get a little further . . . Spur grabbed her.

'Let go of me!' she yelled, glaring at him.

'Hold your tongue, Princess, or I'll break your neck!' Spur spat. Atta gulped.

'Er, Spur?' Molt began, 'I don't think . . .'

'Did I ask your opinion, Molt?'

'But, Spur . . .' said another.

'Did I ask anyone's opinion!'

'He's not gonna be happy when he finds out . . .' Molt murmured.

'What are you on about Molt?' Spur asked in an exceptionally grumpy tone.

'That ant,' one of the others said.

'The one that stopped us before,' added a second.

'Well, what about him!'

'The princess,' Molt explained, 'she's his girlfriend. At least I think she is.' The other grasshoppers, excluding Spur, began to panic.

'Who knows what he'll do!' one exclaimed.

'Or what powers he possesses!' another said.

'He has powers beyond your imagination,' Atta told them with a small smile. The grasshoppers began to panic even more. Atta was having trouble preventing herself from laughing.

'Let's get outta here!' yelled the first.

'Let the princess go, Spur! Let her go!' the second shouted. A growl of frustration from Spur silenced the gang.

'We're taking the princess hostage. If that ant wants his precious girlfriend back, let him try!' Spur growled. Suddenly, a pile of snow came shooting through the air, only just missing the grasshoppers.

'I think he's trying, Spur,' Molt said.

'What!' Spur looked down to see Flik, the blueberry scouts and the circus bugs. They were using Flik's old catapult to shoot snow into the air.

'Oh, he looks mad,' said Molt in a worried tone.

'Maybe you should do what the others say and let me go before you get busted.' Atta said in a calm voice.

'I thought I told you to . . ! Ah!' Spur had been hit by a large amount of snow. The bugs below cheered. The other grasshoppers were getting away as quickly as they could.

'Fire!' Dot shouted as they shot more snow into the air. This time, Spur let go of Atta. Atta rapidly flew down to them. The bugs cheered again. Realizing that there was no way he could win, Spur flew off.

'Are you okay?' Flik asked Atta. She nodded. The circus bugs had begun to take the catapult apart in order to take it back inside. The blueberry scouts hurried inside.

'Flik! You shouldn't be out here,' Atta suddenly cried, 'Dr. Flora precisely told you . . . and you're shivering!'

'I'm f-f-fine,'

'Get inside;' Francis told them, 'we'll manage this.'

Everyone was disturbed that the grasshoppers were hanging around and that they had a new leader. A council meeting was called almost immediately. Meanwhile some of the workers were ensuring that the blueberry scouts were warmed up quickly. The circus bugs were having their own discussion.

Flik was in the Council Chamber where the meeting was being held but he wasn't contributing anything. He didn't feel so good. He went up to Atta in order to tell her but she brushed him away.

'Flik, we're in the middle of an important meeting!' Flik slunk off to sit at the edge. He didn't know why, but he just couldn't stop shivering.

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End file.
